Rob Lockyer, Adrian de Ferrenti and James Norvill took overall victory in the MDL Marinas Ocean Village Cup on Saturday 4 July, winning Class 1 in Good Boy Vodka to claim the top step of the podium at Round 3 of the 2026 UKOPRA Championship. The Officer of the Day curtailed racing at the end of the first lap for all classes, a possibility flagged at the morning’s drivers’ briefing as the strong winds forecast for the Solent built through the afternoon.
Class 1 and Class 1L
Good Boy Vodka (1-25, Rob Lockyer / Adrian de Ferrenti / James Norvill) took Class 1 ahead of Smokin’ Aces (1-74, James Dodge / Chris Dodge), finishing 4 minutes 49 seconds clear after 48.9 nautical miles. Bullett Offshore Racing (1-47, Drew Langdon / Miles Jennings) did not start after an engine problem struck before the muster point, with the boat reported to have been running well up to that point.
The result puts Good Boy Vodka on 800 points for the season and Smokin’ Aces on 700, with two rounds of the UKOPRA 2026 Championship left to run. Realistically, the fight for the Class 1 title is now between the two of them.
Sixty9 Offshore Racing (1L-69, Alex Welham / Neil Raven) won Class 1L, their third win in three races this season. It puts Welham and Raven on 1100 points and looking unchallenged for the Class 1L title, in what is only their second season of racing together after debuting last year. Black Ball Racing (1L-8, Rod Hawkins / Martin McLaughlin / Barry Culver) and Oceanus Racing VT (1L-7, Rich Truscott / Rob Bingham) both retired, the latter on their first UKOPRA start of the season.
| Pos | Boat # | Boat | Crew | Class Pos | Elapsed | Dist (nm) | Avg (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1-25 | Good Boy Vodka | Rob Lockyer / Adrian de Ferrenti / James Norvill | 1st Class 1 | 47:57 | 48.9 | 70.41 |
| 2 | 1-74 | Smokin’ Aces | James Dodge / Chris Dodge | 2nd Class 1 | 52:46 | 48.9 | 63.99 |
| DNS | 1-47 | Bullett Offshore Racing | Drew Langdon / Miles Jennings | DNS | — | — | — |
| 3 | 1L-69 | Sixty9 Offshore Racing | Alex Welham / Neil Raven | 1st Class 1L | 53:15 | 48.9 | 63.41 |
| RET | 1L-8 | Black Ball Racing | Rod Hawkins / Martin McLaughlin / Barry Culver | RET | — | — | — |
| RET | 1L-7 | Oceanus Racing VT | Rich Truscott / Rob Bingham | RET | — | — | — |
Race curtailed at the end of lap one.
Class 2
Lightning Strikes (2-69, Dean Stoneman / Harry Thomas) had gone into the round on 800 points but retired with a mechanical issue off Southbourne. Unipart (M-31, Robin Ward / Jeff Hall) took the class win, and the 400 points move them above Lightning Strikes to the top of the Class 2 leaderboard on 869. Great White (2-800, Ian McCulloch / Ben Metcalfe / Chris Doran) took second and 66 Racing 2 (2-66, TP Spink / Malc Dopson / Louis Spink / Robert Hingston) third.
Conditions off the Needles were rough enough that at least one boat-based race photographer described the shoot as one of the toughest of the season, corroborating the strong-wind picture from the pre-race forecast.
| Pos | Boat # | Boat | Crew | Class Pos | Elapsed | Dist (nm) | Avg (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | M-31 | Unipart | Robin Ward / Jeff Hall | 1st Class 2 | 67:39 | 48.9 | 49.91 |
| 2 | 2-800 | Great White | Ian McCulloch / Ben Metcalfe / Chris Doran | 2nd Class 2 | 71:01 | 48.9 | 47.54 |
| 3 | 2-66 | 66 Racing 2 | TP Spink / Malc Dopson / Louis Spink / Robert Hingston | 3rd Class 2 | 75:15 | 48.9 | 44.87 |
| RET | 2-69 | Lightning Strikes | Dean Stoneman / Harry Thomas | RET | — | — | — |
Race curtailed at the end of lap one.
Class 3
Licence to Thrill (E-32, Lee Ornsby / Ross Macgregor) won Class 3E, 5 minutes 3 seconds clear of Rush Racing (E-16, Gary Gooden / Abigail Gooden). Thunderstreak (H-400, Peter Hall / Richard Watson / Trevor Squibb) took third. 66 Racing (E-11, Ben Brown / Perry Murphy) and Mermaid / Wight Offshore (E-12, Richard Jackson / Baylan Blanks) both retired. Life Racing (E-25, Craig Fletcher / Duncan Good) did not start, on what would have been their first UKOPRA appearance this season.
Carpe Diem (D-50, James Winkworth / Harry Winkworth) won Class 3D ahead of Just Add Water (D-33, Murray MacGregor / James Dodds); Team Interceptor (D-6, Michael Xuereb / Kurt Mifsud) retired. Team JB-R (B-26, John Bunyan / Luke Cloudsdale) won Class 3B after TeamworX (B-33, Clive Prestidge / Scott Weldon) did not start. Joker (C-38, Richard Dean / Michael Barnes), the sole Class 3C entry, did not start.
| Pos | Boat # | Boat | Crew | Class Pos | Elapsed | Dist (nm) | Avg (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E-32 | Licence to Thrill | Lee Ornsby / Ross Macgregor | 1st Class 3E | 40:15 | 32.6 | 55.92 |
| 2 | E-16 | Rush Racing | Gary Gooden / Abigail Gooden | 2nd Class 3E | 45:18 | 32.6 | 49.69 |
| 3 | D-50 | Carpe Diem | James Winkworth / Harry Winkworth | 1st Class 3D | 54:55 | 32.6 | 40.99 |
| 4 | B-26 | Team JB-R | John Bunyan / Luke Cloudsdale | 1st Class 3B | 59:12 | 32.6 | 38.02 |
| 5 | H-400 | Thunderstreak | Peter Hall / Richard Watson / Trevor Squibb | 3rd Class 3E | 68:50 | 32.6 | 32.70 |
| 6 | D-33 | Just Add Water | Murray MacGregor / James Dodds | 2nd Class 3D | 69:01 | 32.6 | 32.61 |
| RET | E-11 | 66 Racing | Ben Brown / Perry Murphy | RET | — | — | — |
| RET | E-12 | Mermaid / Wight Offshore | Richard Jackson / Baylan Blanks | RET | — | — | — |
| RET | D-6 | Team Interceptor | Michael Xuereb / Kurt Mifsud | RET | — | — | — |
| DNS | B-33 | TeamworX | Clive Prestidge / Scott Weldon | DNS | — | — | — |
| DNS | E-25 | Life Racing | Craig Fletcher / Duncan Good | DNS | — | — | — |
| DNS | C-38 | Joker | Richard Dean / Michael Barnes | DNS | — | — | — |
Race curtailed at the end of lap one. OOD: Fiona Pascoe. Signed off 16:00.
2026 UKOPRA Championship Standings
See how today’s result changes the points picture across all seven classes, updated after every round.
View Standings
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
